Gardening in Melbourne, Australia.

The May nursery report.

Last month the garden show in Melbourne had over 110,000 visitors. Two weeks later here at the nursery we were inundated with hundreds of people wanting to save water and swap their old twist nozzle hose for a free trigger one. We ran out on day 2. On top of this nurseries all over Melbourne recorded excellent Easter sales and the state government announced a relaxing of water restrictions. All in all it has made me realise that the joys of gardening are being appreciated by more and more people every day. It makes me so pleased for the wholesale growers, because like many agricultural pursuits, in some years it can be a heartbreaking occupation.

The reason it can so quickly go from joyful to heartbreaking, is of course because of mother nature. Take the roses this year. With cooler weather and more rain and dampness around, black spot has proliferated. High humidity in March only added to the problem. So you need to work out a strategy. Remove all fallen leaves as they will house the fungus. Never water the leaves on the plant, and prune back affected branches to healthy wood. Spray with lime sulphur in winter and keep roses well fed throughout other times of the year. Wow this sounds like a lot of effort yet we will sell over 3000 roses this winter. Why? Well yes, there could be some pain along the way - but when those first buds break into bloom, you know it has all been worth it.

Those cymbidium orchids you had hiding in the shade over summer can be brought out to a sunnier position now to promote spring flowering. Check for snails under the rim of the pot as they love hanging around for new flower buds. Raising the pots on couple of bricks will also make a big difference with the increased airflow. Water plants regularly during periods of dry weather.

In vegie seeds, try ‘Perpetual Silverbeet’ from Yates. It is actually more like spinach and will crop for ages. Leeks are another good one now to sow in a seedling tray and then in a few weeks transplant the seedlings. Plant just 5cm apart and you will fit heaps into a small patch. Of course Schreurs are the best leek growers in Australia and they are just past Cranbourne, so they’ve gotta grow well in our part of the world. In seedlings, check out the Oasis multi-cut lettuce that you can harvest up to three times.

Cut back any perennials that have finished flowering and may look a bit scrappy. These may include salvias, penstemons and sedums. Start letting indoor plants dry out for longer periods before watering, and liquid feed pansies, primulas and polyanthus to get some size on them before winter. Mulching around them will decrease evaporation significantly.

Look out for the new magnolia ‘Teddy Bear’. It looks just like ‘Little Gem’ but will grow half its size (just 3 metres after 10 years). Some new grafted gum trees are also on the way that will flower their heads off but only reach 2 metres in size. As both these plants are challenging to propagate, they will probably be as rare as hen’s teeth for a while.

Enjoy the good times in your garden, face up to the failures, and learn new things as you go. Unlike many other activities in life, the older you get, the better you will be. If in doubt, just consult your nearest seasoned gardener, or pop along to your local nursery.